Posts Tagged: ‘Miscellaneous’

Over-Technologied Redux – Originally Published June 2018

June 10, 2018 Posted by Tiny

A Pain in the Whatchamacallit
By Tiny Ruisch

Way back in November of 2010, I invented a new term.  I can’t believe that it hasn’t caught on.  Over‑technologied is a term that I made up to describe a situation where technology is used either unnecessarily, stupidly, inadequately or in some other silly manner.  I think that people who have the latest, greatest, newest technology and then don’t know how to use it are extremely over‑technologied.  I made up the word, so I guess I can make up the definition.

At the recent Google I/O Show, they announced their updated Google Assistant (with six new voices).  By now everyone has probably heard the call to the hairdresser and the restaurant making an appointment.  Although I don’t know how much was real and how much was made to sound nice for playback, I think this is another case of being over‑technologied.  Making an appointment is one thing.  Can you imagine what it will be like during election season when the politicians call to beg for money?  How about the many other spam call companies?  Personally, I plan to handle those problems by just not answering any calls from unknown telephone numbers.

How many people do you know with so many flash drives, storage cards, disk drives, etc. that cannot find a file because they can’t remember where they stored it?  Do you think they might be over‑technologied?  I’ve got a hint for them.  Cloud storage is cheap.

Every year manufacturers release their new cell phone with higher prices.  They justify having to gouge us by increasing the over‑technology that is installed.  Do we really need two cameras?  Is massive storage required when almost all data is stored in the cloud?  How many people really need sensors to check blood pressure, atmospheric pressure, light intensity, relative humidity, etc.?  How many people do you know that actually use a fingerprint sensor to unlock their phone?  My phone has the ability to fast charge with a special power adapter.  I’ve used it exactly two times.  The first was when I bought the phone and checked to see if it worked.  One other time, I forgot to charge the phone and used quick charge for about ten minutes.  Like almost everyone else, my phone is over‑technologied.

Our homes are definitely becoming over‑technologied.  Do we need refrigerators that keep track of how much milk is left in the jug?  How about those toilets that can warm the seat, automatically lower the lid, etc.?  I haven’t done a search, but I would be willing to bet that you can find one that automatically washes and blow dries when you finish your business.  My DVR is so over‑technologied that when the time changes, it doesn’t.

I’m probably going to get a lot of disagreement when I say that almost every Operating System has become over‑technologied.  Windows has been in such a hurry to add features that almost every time there is an update, there will be complaints about systems becoming inoperable.  If you survey a hundred different Android users, you will be lucky to find ten of them with the same OS.  Linux is about the same except that you would have a hard time finding a hundred users.  Even Apple suffers the same problems as the others.  The technology has advanced so much that they are not able to keep up with the security.  Additionally, you would be hard pressed to find anyone that uses all of the newest features in any OS.

Much of the over‑technology I wrote about eight years ago is still valid today.  Maybe I’ll have to address the subject again in 2026.

Thanks for reading.

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Android App Permissions – Originally Published June 2018

June 10, 2018 Posted by Tiny

From the Dark Side
by Tiny Ruisch

Would you mind if I came to your home and looked through your house to get some ideas for things to write about in this column?  If I find anything useful, I promise not to tell anyone where I got the information.  I promise that I will keep any details about your private life secret.  Of course, if I change my mind later, you won’t be able to do anything about it because you gave me permission.

If as I suspect you answered “no”, I hope you are as diligent with your Android phone.  When you install an application, do you give it permission to look through your data and use it for marketing or other purposes?  Over the years, there have been many Android programs that have wanted to do similar things on your phone.

Android forces apps to declare the permissions they require when they install them.  You can protect your privacy, security, and cell phone bill by paying attention to Android app permissions when installing those apps.  Prior to Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) all applications declared their permissions before installing.  You could either accept and install, or decline and not install.  The problem with this system was that many users didn’t pay attention. An application for a game could potentially harvest all of a users contact data.

In newer versions of Android, apps have to individually request each permission. Keep in mind that if you deny a permission, the application might not work as designed.

It is easy to check the permissions of an Android application.  If you have already installed it on your device, go to Settings>Apps.  Scroll down to the app you want to examine and tap it.  Click the permissions field.  If it is an application you are thinking of installing, open the Google Play Store and go to the app.  Then click on the “Permission Details” tab.

Why is it important to check permissions?  Simply because our phones contain so much personal information.  They have our exact location, contact data, personal pictures and more.  They can record everything we say and do.  In short, access to your Android device is access to you.

An internet search will find millions of sites that tell you what each permission is.  Probably the best place to research permissions is Google Support.  There are two informative articles:
1. Review app permissions thru Android 5.9
2. Control your app permissions on Android 6.0 and up

Use common sense when you install apps. If a flashlight program asks to read contact information, it might not be the best one to install. Reputable app developers will tell you why their software needs each permission.

Thanks for reading.

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More Things I Hate About Technology – Originally Published May 2018

May 13, 2018 Posted by Tiny

A Pain in the Whatchamacallit
By Tiny Ruisch

Way back in October 2009, I wrote an article about things I hate about technology.  I’m not going to regurgitate the whole thing, but I will say that I still hate: 1) having to use several different types of USB cords and connectors; 2) End User License Agreements; 3) SPAM and forwarded e‑mails; and 4) buying a water filter for my refrigerator.

In fact, buying a water filter is what caused this months rant.  I recently went to a popular home store to buy a new filter for my Whirlpool refrigerator.  This is the same one I owned back in 2009.  After that experience, I learned to keep a file in my Evernote account listing serial numbers, product codes, manufacturer information, and most importantly, replacement part numbers.  The only problem, none of the numbers on the filters in the store matched the one I needed.  It turned out that the filter manufacturer had changed the numbering system.  The employee told me I should have brought the old filter in to the store.  I asked why since I had the number.  They were polite, looked up the new number on their fancy computer and promptly sold me the wrong filter.  After another trip the next day, I got the correct filter.  I have noticed this problem on many other items in the past.  I wonder if manufacturers think that people will buy the wrong part and just lose their money?

Maybe hate is to strong of a word, but I’ve always disliked how companies almost always have to use a proprietary document format.  The perfect example is word processing.  Why must each program have a different extension?  Is it good for business to make consumers remember “.doc”. “.odf’, “.wps”, “.docx”, “.odt”, “.txt”, “.rtf”, “.abw”, “.abi” and hundreds of others?  Almost all word processing software has a save as feature to convert files to other formats.  They can’t be that much different.  Why isn’t there a standard where all programs save in a standard format?  After all, this idea seems to work pretty well for HTML internet files.

Have you ever heard how technology brings the world closer together?  Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and many other social networks supposedly are the main reason.  Personally, I dislike how technology does the opposite.  Have you ever been in a conversation and the other person is busy fiddling with an electronic device?  Did you ever notice that many younger people don’t have simple skills like making change, telling time, following a map, etc.  These and many more are because they rely on technology too much.  I would suggest that we are moving farther apart.

I guess that I’ve done enough complaining for this month.

Thanks for reading.

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Start Your Own Website – Originally Published March 2018

March 11, 2018 Posted by Tiny

A Pain in the Whatchamacallit
By Tiny Ruisch

I purchased my first internet domain name on May 10, 2001.  For several years before that, I had a personal website that I hosted on the AOL free server.  Fast forward to 2018 and I’m the owner of a dozen different domain names. (I’m counting the club websites which I lease to the SWLAPCUG at cost).

I think that everyone should get their own domain for a variety of reasons.  The biggest reason is so that you can easily control your e-mail.  If your e-mail address is YourName@suddenlink.net, you would lose it if you ever changed your Internet Service Provider to AT&T or another company.  If you had your own domain, you could have the e-mail address of YourName@yourdomain.com or .net, or .org, etc.  You would keep that e-mail for as long as you owned the domain.  Never again would you have to change your e-mail address.  Not only that, you could have many e-mail addresses.  I usually create a new address for different sites.  If I get a lot of spam, I know who sold my e-mail address.

Owning your domain isn’t expensive.  For instance HostGator, the club’s web hosting service, charges $12.95 a year to register SWLAPCUG.org.  Hosting services are $7.16 a month.  If you sign up for three years, the rate drops to $3.96.  If you do a web search you will find many companies and many different pricing plans.  For that low fee, you get unlimited e-mail addresses, disk space and bandwidth.  There are several other hosting sites that offer similar pricing.

Once you’ve purchased the service, you can easily make a website to show off your hobbies, a family photo album, share recipes.  Other uses for personal domains and websites are to give family members their own e-mail address, host private chat rooms, backup files, etc.

You could also do like me: plain old fashioned BS.

Although it is helpful, there is really no reason to know HTML coding.  There are several free programs that can have your personal website up and running in just a few hours.  Most hosting companies offer easy installation of these applications.  Web searches will find you many more.

The club website is powered by open sourced bulletin board software.  On my personal site I use several free programs: RV Web Site Builder, WordPress, Blue Griffon, to name just a few.  My point is that if you can use a word processor, you can use website software.

I sure hope I’ll be checking out some new websites in the near future.  After all, if I can create a website, anyone can.
Thanks for reading.

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Cruising 2019 – Originally Published February 2019

February 10, 2018 Posted by Tiny

A Pain in the Whatchamacallit
By Tiny Ruisch

I’ve been cruising again!  I checked my article index and found that it has been only a year since I wrote about “cruising technology”.  Normally, I probably wouldn’t again address the topic so quickly, but I had some new and unique experiences this trip.  Some things have gotten better and others are worse.  Unfortunately, the worse column is much bigger than the better.

Most things haven’t changed much since I last wrote a cruising article (February 2017).  This trip I brought my cell phone, a seven inch tablet, an eleven inch convertible tablet and my laptop.  On my last cruise, the internet was slow, but adequate.  I foolishly thought I would get some website redesign completed.  So far this trip, the satellite service has been slow and inadequate.  I’m not sure of the reason, but I think it is partially due to many more people using the WIFI network to access the “Carnival Hub”.

The Carnival Hub is the cruise line’s app that connects to the ship’s WIFI to allow passengers to do several things:
• View the weather for each day of sailing
• View dining menus
• Search for family and friends on board
• View and purchase shore excursions
• Chat with family and friends on board (five dollar activation fee)
• Day by day schedule of on board events
• “Favorites” feature with a reminder for upcoming events
• Searchable deck plans with key areas highlighted
• Real time information on current account balance
• Much more

This application has been greatly improved since the last time I sailed.  It is free to use, but it seems that satellite internet traffic has been much slower this time.  I can’t know for sure.  I do know that it is faster early in the day before most people are awake.

When you purchase the cruise line internet plan, you are only allowed to log on with one device at a time.  I had successfully used my seven and eleven inch tablets, my cell phone, my wife’s tablet and cell phone.  On the second day of the cruise, I was going to do some editing on the club newsletter.  I booted my laptop, but it refused to connect to the internet.  Finally, I was frustrated enough to go to the service desk and ask.  The girl that was working there said that several people were having the same problem.  She said that it was some kind of DNS problem.  I told her thanks and changed my settings to “Obtain DNS server address automatically”.  I had been using Google DNS servers as they are usually a little faster.  She was amazed and had me show her what to do.  After griping about the ship’s tech support, she jokingly (I think) asked me to apply for a job.

Other things haven’t changed too much.  Most people are still doing their book reading on Kindles, iPads, Android tablets or large screen smart phones.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         It does seem that fewer people are reading, but I am sure that is just a bad observation on my part. I won’t be taking the “Behind the Scenes” tour this time so the only shipboard technology I’ve seen is the retail sales system and the bingo playing software. Of course, there is a lot of other technology at the casino.
Sounds like we’re coming back next January. I guess I could be talked into it.
Thanks for reading.

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Cleaning Out Evernote – Originally Published January 2018

January 1, 2018 Posted by Tiny

A Pain in the Whatchamacallit
By Tiny Ruisch

One of the few programs I spend money on is Evernote.  I’ve used it for several years and find it indispensable.  As I write this, I’ve got 634 notes saved in 71 notebooks.  I’ve got eight notebooks just for SWLAPCUG stuff.  I’ve got one notebook where I save stuff that I want to check later.  I’ve been a little remiss in clearing out this notebook.  There is 66 notes that I have to take action on.  I thought this might be a good time to share some of my oddities with the club.

1. How to Use Your Laptop Like an External Monitor is an article from Make Use Of that I saved because I use multiple monitors.  After rereading it, I’m deciding that it’s too much trouble.  I’m deleting the note.
2. How to Disable the HomeGroup Feature in Windows (and Remove It from File Explorer) is a How To Geek tutorial.  I forgot that I had saved it almost a year ago.  I had made the changes on all my computers except the desktop.  It’s changed now and the note is deleted.
3. Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do with ADB was a Make Tech Easier article with a good tutorial for using the Android Debug Bridge (ADB).  I moved it to my Android notebook so that I’ll know where to find it when I need it again.
4. How to Connect Multiple External Monitors to Your Laptop is another How To Geek article that I thought would be useful.  After rereading it, I realized the advice was to plug the internal monitor into a port.  Another one for the trash bin.
5. Make Tech Easier had an article titled 5 of the Best Camera Apps for Android You Should Try.  I should delete this link to, but someday I’m going to try them.
6. ManualLib is a useful site for downloading manuals for just about everything.  Good thing I’m writing this article because I finally got the link moved from Evernote to my web browser links.
7. I saved this article from Android Central. Best Universal Lenses For Android Phones is a review of attachable camera lenses.  I was thinking about spending a little money and getting one.  After further reflection I decided not to waste my money.  My Canon camera takes better pictures.
8. I made a note on the Q4 Operating System.  I have computers with various Linux Distros, Windows 10, 7 and XP, and iOS.  I thought about trying this one, but deleted it.
9. Media Bias Fact Check is an online media outlet dedicated to educating the public on media bias and deceptive news practices.  I don’t remember where I originally found out about the site, but I put a link (right underneath Snopes) on my browser home page.
10. TV Series Finale is a site that I added to my browser entertainment bookmarks.  It keeps users up to date on whether a TV show has been renewed, canceled or put on hiatus.  There is also a lot of other television information on the site.

This is just ten of the actions I did.  I don’t usually let my “action” notebook get so bloated.  I guess I can blame it on spending too much time redoing the clubs’ website portal.  Most of the remaining notes I deleted.  There were a few that I have posted on the club forums.  There were some that will end up in a future newsletter Mindbender.  Out of the original 66 notes, I kept four for future action.

My next project is to review and clean out my seventy other notebooks.  That will probably be a good project for next month on the cruise ship.  I’ve got a feeling there will be more links posted on the club’s website.

Thanks for reading.

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Watching Television – Originally Published November 2017

November 5, 2017 Posted by Tiny

A Pain in the Whatchamacallit
By Tiny Ruisch

Creating my presentation for the club meeting this month gave me a chance to reflect on how my television viewing habits have changed in the last fifty or sixty years.  I remember when I was young and my father bought our first TV.  Although I don’t recall the make or model, I remember how big the box was for such a small viewing screen.  There were never arguments at our house on what to watch.  This wasn’t because of the lack of channels.  My father made the decision and the rest of us watched.

After I grew up and joined the Navy, there wasn’t much TV for me.  This was because of a lack of channels.  There wasn’t any of them in the middle of the ocean.  This was long before satellites.  We relied on friends and families mailing us VCR tapes of popular shows.  That is how I first watched Star Trek, Gilligan’s Island, McHale’s Navy and many others.

Fast forward to the 1990’s when I briefly owned a satellite receiver.  The main thing I remember about the dish network is how the darn thing would be mostly static whenever we got a heavy downpour of rain or snow.  At the time, I was living in a really small town (population about 1500). The choices were dish or an over the air antenna.  This was also the era when I first put in a second phone line for the internet, but that’s a story for another article.

In 2000, four small towns in the area banded together and created The Community Agency (TCA). The TCA was (and still is) a locally owned municipality utility that provided high‑speed telecommunications service.  These included high speed internet, cable television and telephone service.  This was my first experience with broad band and that is all I’ve used for internet access since.

Today, I’m still using cable services.  My television in the living room gets all of the premium services: HBO, Cinemax, Showtime, Starz and the sports channels.  People that know me can tell you what a great pricing deal I have.  The funny part is that neither the wife or myself seldom watch any of these stations.

In my computer room, where I spend a lot of my time, I’ve installed two over the air antennas which I use to watch and record televison on Next PVR.  I get plenty of channels that I like and usually have a show running on one of the four monitors I have installed.  Sometimes I find myself watching so much television that I don’t get any reading done.  It can be a hard job keeping up with the vast wasteland.

If you’re wondering why I have bored you with this brief history of my television viewing experiences, it is because I’m hoping to entice you to come to this months club meeting.  I am going to demonstrate my latest TV viewing method.  I recently purchased a Roku Ultra.  I will also be showing some interesting web sites for obtaining free television and movies.  Come to the meeting.  I think you will enjoy learning about this technology.

Thanks for reading.

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Summer Reading List – Originally Published October 2017

October 8, 2017 Posted by Tiny

A Pain in the Whatchamacallit
By Tiny Ruisch

Ever since I learned how, I’ve always been an avid reader.  My parents didn’t have a television until I was about ten years old.  That never bothered me.  The library had a lot of entertainment.  In later life, when I was in the Navy, I seldom watched the ship’s movie.  I was busy finishing reading one more chapter of my book before lights out.  These days, I still read at least a dozen magazines each month.  I am usually reading three or four books at a time.  I’ve got my bedside book, bathroom book, digital book and an audio book for my morning walk.

This year I did something new.  I created a “summer reading list” of all the books I was going to read this past season.  I’ve never felt the need to do that before this year.  As I’ve gotten a little older, my memory is starting to slide a little.  I thought that a reading list would remind me of books I’ve wanted to read.

Now that we’re into October, I realize that I haven’t finished my reading list.  I thought I’d take a few minutes and share my books to read list with you.  These are all books that I haven’t yet read.  I’ve included the Amazon link for each title just in case anyone else would like to read them.  I’m not sure, but I don’t think any of them are available from the Parish library.

• The Manly Art of Knitting – The description says it all. Who am I to not read a cult classic.
• Folks, This Ain’t Normal: A Farmer’s Advice for Happier Hens, Healthier People, and a Better World – With a sixteen word title, this just has to be a great book.
• Winning Lotto / Lottery For Everyday Players – I’ll read this if I ever start playing the lottery.
• The 2009-2014 Outlook for Wood Toilet Seats in Greater China – I’ve been to China two or three times and never realized this was a problem.
• Quotations From Chairman Mao Tse-Tung – Confucius say, “Smooth words and fawning looks are seldom found with love. ”
• Much Ado About Nothing: The Restored Klingon Text – Shakespeare kind of looked like a Klingon.
• What’s Your Poo Telling You? – Sometimes I’m just overly curious.
• Fancy Coffins to Make Yourself – I’ve been thinking of taking up woodworking and this looks like an interesting first project.
• Reusing Old Graves – I need someplace to put those fancy coffins that I’m going to make.
• A Passion for Donkeys – I figure that any book that gets a five star rating on Amazon must be a good one to read.
• The Stray Shopping Carts of Eastern North America – I just hate going to the Walmart parking lot.

I guess you’ve probably figured out by now that I don’t really plan on reading all of these books.  I will admit that I have read one of the books on the list.  I won’t tell you which one.  You can feel free to read any of them and post a review on our club website.
A final thought.  Looking at this book list, I’m reminded of one book that it makes me want to read it again.  It was one of Ray Bradbury’s best books.

That’s all of my thoughts for October.  My mind is empty again.  Thanks for reading.

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Best Linux Distribution? – Originally Published October 2017

October 8, 2017 Posted by Tiny

From the Dark Side
by Tiny Ruisch

Whenever geeks start talking about Linux, at some time the conversation turns to “Which Linux Distribution is the best?”  Sometimes I find that to be a little amusing. Does anyone ever discuss which Window OS is the best?  As I write this, Microsoft is in some fashion still supporting these different Operating Systems.

• Windows 10 Home
• Windows 10 Pro
• Windows 10 Pro Education
• Windows 10 Enterprise
• Windows 10 Enterprise LTSB
• Windows 10 Education
• Windows 10 Mobile
• Windows 10 Mobile Enterprise
• Windows 10 IoT Core
• Windows 10 IoT Enterprise
• Windows 10 IoT Mobile Enterprise
• Windows 8.1
• Windows 8.1 Pro
• Windows 8.1 Enterprise
• Windows 8
• Windows 8 Pro
• Windows 8 Enterprise
• Windows 8 OEM
• Windows 7 Starter
• Windows 7 Home Basic
• Windows 7 Home Premium
• Windows 7 Professional
• Windows 7 Enterprise
• Windows 7 Ultimate
• Window 7 Thin PC

This is just a partial list.  There are also several Microsoft OSs for servers, foreign countries, specialized businesses, etc.  You can also still use Microsoft non-supported systems.

Linux distributions are similar to all of those Windows OSs.  They all operate the same, but have different interfaces.  These “shells” can change the appearance and feel of the different distros, but underneath, it is still a Linux kernel running the show.  Linux distros are easy to download and test.  Many of them can even be run from a USB flash drive.

My answer to the “best Linux” question is the same as my answer to the best automobile, the best phone, the best breed of dog, or the best anything.  Whichever works for you is the best.

Thanks for reading.

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A Little Bit of Bragging – Originally Published September 2017

September 3, 2017 Posted by Tiny

A Pain in the Whatchamacallit
By Tiny Ruisch

It’s even hard for me to believe.  For some unknown reason, I’m having a hard time deciding on a topic to write about this month.  Everyone that knows me can tell you that I am seldom at a loss for words.  I have an opinion on almost every subject.

I keep an Evernote file with article ideas.  Whenever I get an idea for a future article, I make a note of it.  Now that I’m actually looking at the list, none of the topics seem to appeal to me.

I loaded my Whatchamacallit template file.  Then I opened my index list and looked at the blank subject line for September 2017.  All of a sudden, it hit me what I was going to write about.

This month, I’m going to brag a little bit.  If you find that you’re not interested, please go on to the next article in the newsletter.  I won’t be offended.  Heck, I won’t even know you didn’t read this article.

Way back in February 2009, what originally started as a one time article where I was complaining about all of the crap ware installed on a new computer, turned into a series of 90 diatribes.  That adds up to around 54,000 words or so.  I sure hope that I haven’t created too much wamble.

February must be a slow month for me.  In 2011, I sent the Newsletter Editor my first Mind Bender puzzle.  Everyone seems to like them as I get a lot of comments and suggestions for future flummoxes.  Looking back, I find it hard to believe that I’ve created 77 assorted mystifiers.

In May of that same year, so many people asked me about the KeePass password program that I wrote a review for the monthly newsletter.  From that humble beginning evolved a series of 44 Lagniappe articles with my reviews of free software.  Another 27,000 words or so of grandiloquence.

In January of last year, I started to run out of subjects to ramble about.  That was when I went to the Darkside and started to relate my experiences and thoughts on Android devices and apps.  I don’t know if I’ve managed to elucidate anything, but I’ve tried 26 times, another 14,000 words or so.

Add in a few Christmas poems and a couple of fill in for the President messages makes me think I’ve probably put way over 150,000 words in the Newsletter.  No wonder I hardly ever get time to post anything on the club web site.

I may have to take a sabbatical.  I could use a little rest.

That’s all of my thoughts for August.  My mind is empty again.  I hope I didn’t bore everyone too much.  Thanks for reading.

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